Welcome Mat Newsletter - Steve Scott

**Mtripp** · Posted On: 5/11/2009 12:43pm

WELCOME MAT ONLINE NEWSLETTER
April/May, 2009
By Steve Scott

This issue's quote: "You can be sincere and still be stupid." Dave Ransey

UPCOMING EVENTS

May 16-17, SHINGITAI TRAINING CAMP/CONVENTION, Perrysville, Ohio It's not too late to get in the camp and have one of the best weekends you will remember in jujitsu, judo, submission grappling and self-defense training. Call John Saylor at (419) 938-6089.
May 30, WELCOME MAT GAMES, Kearney, Missouri Call Ken Brink at (816) 969-9019. There will be judo, sambo and freestyle judo (both gi and no gi). This has been a successful meet the last several years.
July 17-18, AAU JUDO GRAND NATIONALS, Kearney, Missouri Call Ken Brink on this one as well. Pre-registration is required, so call Ken or visit his website at www.BrinksWelcomeMat.com to get the PDF file for the entry form. Also, there is a USJA COACHING CLINIC that may be held on Sunday, May 19 at the same location. USJA President AnnMaria DeMars will be the coach for the clinic. She plans on having it from about 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Aug. 16, AAU JUDO NATIONALS, Milwaukee, Wisconsin Call Norm Miller, AAU Judo Chairman, for information at (414) 354-1898.
Oct. TBA, AAU FREESTYLE JUDO NATIONALS, Kearney, Missouri Call Ken Brink on this one as well. If you want information on freestyle judo rules, contact me at stevescottjudo@yahoo.com or listen to the Judo Podcast, Episodne 42 for more informaiton.
Oct. 24, MISSOURI STATE JUDO CHAMPIONSHIPS AND DLT MEMORIAL OPEN, Pleasant Hill, Missouri Call Mike Thomas at (913) 271-1131.

TAP OUT TEXTBOOK
My new book, TAP OUT TEXTBOOK, is proving to be popular. Turtle Press published it during the first week of April and it looks to be a well-received and popular book. It has 480 pages, is 8 1/2" by 11" in size and has over 1,900 photos. Go to www.TurtlePress.com or www.Amazon,com and pick up a copy. There are over 430 different differetn ways to do armlocks, chokes/strangles and leglocks. I wrote it for jujitsu, judo, sambo, submission grappling and MMA people, as well as the casual fan who might want to know more aobut what the guys on television do to each other. I appreciate your support in all of my books and projects and think that TAP OUT TEXTBOOK will be the type of book that you can use for years to come as a reference. Thanks to everyone who contributed to the book. There are a lot of outstanding grapplers and photographers who added to the quality of this book and they all have my sincere thanks.

FREESTYLE JUDO

Go to Mike Darter's website at http://theJudoPodcast.com and listen to Episode 42 to hear my interview on Freestyle Judo and AAU Judo with Mike, Gene Shin and Lance Wicks.

First, and let's get this straight from the start; what I'm proposing in freestyle judo is not another "style" of judo or anything so presumtive. Good judo is good judo and anybody who claims to be another Jigoro Kano has a severe ego problem. I'm not one of those people and since I've been losing more hair and what's left is going gray, I can't even claim to be better looking than Prof. Kano was, or much of anything else. What I am proposing is a new look at the rules of the sport of judo and how they can be improved. Freestyle judo is simply the sport of judo using points rather than scoring system now used. The Ippon is retained, especially for throws and submission techniques (If anyone took the Ippon out of judo it would be like taking the knockout out of boxing.), but the rules of freestyle judo allow more time to groundfighting, make an Ippon throw actually be an Ippon throw and give a balance to competitive judo that has slipped away for the past 20 years or so.
Years ago, I hosted some judo tournaments using a point system. It was popular with the athletes and spectators, but never caught on. (Maybe I still hadn't lost all my marbles then and thought better of trying it.) Then, a year or so ago, John Saylor and I (along with J.P. Pocock) got together and started forming the rules for Shingitai Jujitsu contests. As John said; "These rules are pretty much the way judo ought to be done; they let the guys go at it." John was right.
The rules of judo aren't written in stone and it's time we take a serious look at how the rules of the sport of judo can be improved. The freestyle rules simply give the athletes more opportunity to use all the skills of judo.
I worked more on the rules and with some input from a bunch of people, including my wife Becky, Kenney Brink, Norm Miller, Mike Thomas, Sandi Quenelle, Charlie Jones, Chris Heitmann, Bob Rittman, Bret Holder and some other folks, the initial rules for freestyle judo have finally been written (see below).
We're going to have a freestyle judo nationals in the AAU in September or October, 2009. NOTE; The AAU Judo Grand Nationals July 17-18 in Kearney, Missouri will use the current AAU and IJF rules and not freestyle rules. Sure, it'll be a small meet, but it's a start. We've held a couple of regional judo meets here using the freestyle rules and have worked the kinks out and think it's time to move this to a larger stage.
Compare judo to wrestling. There is freestyle wrestling, greco-roman wrestling (both Olympic sports); and in the United States, collegiate wrestling is extrememly popular. It's all wrestling, but each form of wrestling has a different set of rules, but they are still wrestling rules. A wrestler who competes in collegiate matches quickly adapts to the rules of freestlye or greco. It's simply a matter or using a different set of rules. The same logic is applied to freestyle judo. Judo is judo, but the rules of freestyule judo are like the rules of freestyle wrestling; there are more opportunities to score on your opponent and the rules promote more action, especially in groundfighting. I'm not advocating the present rules of judo be scrapped. The freestyle rules can be used in the same way freestyle, greco-roman and collegiate rules are used.
Even if this doesn't catch on, it will still be a great devleopment program used in AAU Judo. That's what the program is all about anyway. Presented below are the rules for freestyle judo.

Note: The standard AAU judo rules will be enforced with the following exceptions and amendments for use in Freestyle Judo. Consult the current AAU Judo Rulebook for more clarification.

Article 1: Content and Context of Rules
The standard rules of judo as accepted and adopted by the AAU Judo Committee shall be enforced with the following exceptions and amendments as outlined in these articles. Freestyle judo has two (2) categories, which are; 1-“Gi” Category where the contestants wear the standard judo uniform, and (2) “No Gi” Category where contestants do not wear the standard judo uniform. The rules of freestyle judo as outlined in these articles apply to both the “gi” and “no gi” categories.

Article 2: Attire
The uniform and attire accepted for freestyle judo matches will be the following; (1) “Gi” Category, where the contestants wear the standard judo uniform as accepted by the AAU judo rules. (2) “No Gi” Category where the contestants shall be attired in standard judo pants to cover the legs (no shorts or other garment other than the accepted judo pants), a T-shirt, tank top, rash guard, body suit or other shirt (with short sleeves, no sleeves or long sleeves) covering the upper body. No shoes of any type are permitted.

Article 3: Identification for Scoring
In the “gi’ category, one athlete shall wear a red belt and one athlete shall wear a white, blue or green belt for purposes of identification for scoring. The colors shall correspond to the colors marked on the scoreboard. In national tournaments, no other belt shall be worn. In the “no gi” category, one athlete shall wear a red ankle strap or a green, blue or white ankle strap for purposes of identification for scoring. The colors shall correspond to the colors marked on the scoreboard.

Article 4: Scoreboard
The scoreboard shall be a numerical scoreboard to record the points scored by each athlete. A “flip-card” or any numerical scoreboard used in wrestling or other sports is acceptable. Penalties shall be noted by a brightly colored (yellow or orange are recommended) card or marker placed next to the scoreboard on the side corresponding to the contestant penalized.

Article 5: Gripping, Grip Fighting and Posture During Standing Judo
The standard rules of AAU Judo for gripping, grip fighting and posture shall apply with the following amendments.
1: In the “no gi” category, contestants may not grab or use any part of either the opponent’s attire or clothing or his/her own attire or clothing in any way; If this takes place, the referee shall break the hold or grip and stop the action if deemed to be necessary by the referee and award penalties if necessary as applied to by the rules.
2: In the “gi” category, the following amendments to the current standard AAU Judo Rules for freestyle judo when engaged in standing or “tachi waza” situations; (a) Holding or gripping the opponent’s belt (any part of the belt other than the portion that hangs from the knot) is permitted, with the exception of holding, grabbing or gripping the belt with the arm or arms straight or rigid in a defensive manner for more than three (3) to five (5) seconds without attacking the opponent. In other words, using the belt is permitted, but not in a passive or overly defensive manner. (b) Contestants are permitted to use the “pistol grip” hold on the opponent’s sleeve as long as it is not used as a passive or overly defensive measure in the opinion of the referee and judges. This grip is permitted as long as the contestant does not use it to avoid action with his opponent for three (3) to five (5) seconds without attacking the opponent. If the contestant is using this grip offensively, to attack his opponent or to transition to another grip, it is permitted. (c) The use of a “cross grip” is allowed. The “2 on 1” or “Russian tie-up” is permitted unless it is used as a measure to be passive or be overly defensive. (d) Holding the opponent’s uniform or body with a grip holding the same side of his uniform or body is permitted unless used by the contestant as a measure to be passive or overly defensive. (e) The goal is to have the contestants in an upright posture so that both contestants can apply active offense and defense. If a contestant’s body bends forward in a passive or overly defensive posture with his/her shoulders forward and hips far away from the opponent for a period of three (3) to five (5) seconds without attacking or attempting a technique, it is considered passivity and the appropriate warning or penalty shall be applied. (f) A contestant who backs directly away from his/her opponent in an attempt to avoid contact is considered passive and shall be warned or penalized. (g) A contestant may grab the opponent’s pants or pant leg in order to attack him. When grabbing the pants or pant leg, the attack must be a continuous from the initial grab, hold or grip. Grabbing the pants or pant leg to avoid combat or in a passive or overly defensive manner is not permitted. (h) A contestant may grab the knot of his/her opponent’s belt (but not the portion of the belt hanging from the knot) when attempting a throw. (i) Situations not covered in these rule amendments shall be decided by the National AAU Judo Rules Committee.
Note: The rules regarding gripping and grip fighting in freestyle judo are less strict than the current standard AAU Judo Rules.

Article 6: Groundfighting (Newaza)
The standard AAU Judo Rules will apply to groundfighting (newaza) situations with the following amendments and exceptions.
1: Active Groundfighting: Groundfighting (newaza) shall be permitted for as long as one, or both, contestants are actively working for a technique, to control the position or making progress toward that end in the opinion of the referee. The contestants must be active and attempting to control his/her opponent or attempt a technique. The referee shall allow both contestants adequate time to actively pursue groundfighting.
2: Passive Groundfighting: Note: A contestant who lies flat on his front or is on his hands/arms and knees balled up and avoiding combat with his opponent for approximately ten (10) seconds, that contestant is considered passive and overly defensive. Avoiding combat or passive or overly defensive behavior will result in possible penalties. If one contestant lies on his front, or positions himself on all fours or balled up tightly to avoid groundfighting and is passive or overly defensive in the opinion of the referee, that contestant shall be assessed instruction, warning and penalties as listed later in Article 9. The referee shall verbally instruct the passive contestant with the command “Get active (color).” The referee shall allow the offending contestant to get active and if he/she does not within ten (10) seconds, the referee shall award an official warning to the offending contestant by saying “Warning (color) for passivity.” On the third offense, the referee shall assess a Chui (1-point penalty) by announcing “Chui, 1 point (color) for passivity.” The referee shall not stop the match or bring the contestants to their feet during this time. If the contestant continues to be passive and avoid combat by laying on his front side or balled up, the referee shall check with the two judges and assess Keikoku and award two (2) points to the other contestant, and ultimately Hansoku Make if the offending contestant continues to be passive and overly defensive. Note: The referee shall not stop the action to stand the contestants up to issue the instruction, warning or penalties.

Article 7: How to Win
A contestant shall be declared the winner in the same situations as used in the current AAU Judo Rules with the following amendments or exceptions.
1: Ippon. Ippon (Full Point) is awarded for a throw or submission technique. The accepted submission techniques are the same as used in the current AAU Judo Rules (armlocks and chokes/strangles). Ippon is not awarded for holding or pinning an opponent (Osaekomi).
2: Superior Decision: When one contestant scores twelve (12) points more than his/her opponent, the match will be stopped by the referee and the winner with the superior score will be declared the winner. (Example: The Red contestant has a score of 14 points and the Blue contestant has a score if 2 points. The Red contestant will be declared the winner by virtue of the 12-point spread in the score.)
3: Points Decision: When the scheduled match time runs out and one contestant is ahead in the score, that contestant shall be declared the winner. (Example: The scheduled match time ends and the Blue contestant has 7 points and the Red contestant has 6 points. The Blue contestant has more points and will be declared the winner.)

Article 7: Assessment of Ippon
Ippon (full point) is scored in the following ways.
1: Throwing: When one contestant throws his/her opponent to the mat with control and force so that the contestant being thrown falls largely on the back and backside. The throw must be forceful and executed with control. The “rolling Ippon” where one contestant throws his/her opponent with control but minimal force will not be assessed as Ippon.
2: Armlocks: Ippon will be assessed in the same way as done in the current AAU Judo Rules.
3: Chokes/Strangles: Ippon will be assessed in the same way as done in the current AAU Judo Rules.
Note: Hold-downs (osaekomi waza) will not score Ippon. See Article 8, Assessment of Points that follow.

Article 8: Assessment of Points
The following point values of 4, 2 and 1 will be awarded for both standing and groundfighting situations with the goal of providing an evenly balanced judo match so that throwing techniques and groundfighting techniques are equally rewarded.
1:Throws and/or Takedowns (Nage Waza):
Four (4) Points: A throw or takedown where the opponent land mostly on the back or backside with control and force but is not sufficient for the awarding of Ippon. (Example; A “rolling” forward throw where one contestant lands with control but not enough force for Ippon. Another example is a throw or takedown that would normally be considered sufficient for a “Waza-ari” in the current standard AAU Judo rules. In other words, a Waza-ari or a borderline case between Waza-ari and Ippon.)
Two (2) Points: A throw or takedown that would be considered Yuko in the current standard AAU Judo Rules.
One (1) Point: A throw or takedown where the contestant thrown lands on his buttocks (and is not continuously or immediately rolled or thrown onto his back or side for a higher score) or lands on his front torso (front of chest, stomach, front of hip or hips or flat on his entire front side (not landing on hands or elbows and knees simultaneously).
2:Hold-downs and Pins (Osaekomi Waza):
Four (4) Points: A hold-down (as accepted in the current standard rules of AAU Judo) for a time length of twenty (20) seconds.
Note: Once a contestant has held the opponent 20 points with a hold-down (osaekomi), the referee shall announce the points and instruct the contestant “4 points (color) go for the submission.” The contestant is expected to attempt a submission technique and the referee will allow the contestant approximately ten (10) seconds to do so. If the contestant is unable to secure a submission technique, the referee will announce “matte” and start both contestants back on their feet. If the contestant who has scored 4 points for the hold-down allows his opponent to stand up without attempting a submission technique, he will be assessed a warning or penalty for passivity.
Two (2) Points: A hold-down of at least ten (10) seconds and less than twenty (20) seconds.
One (1) Point: A hold-down of at least five (5) seconds and less than then (10) seconds.
Note: A contestant is not limited to the number of points he/she can score using osaekomi waza.
3: Groundfighting (Newaza):
One (1) point will be awarded to the contestant who breaks his opponent down and turns him over onto his back or backside with control from a stable position from the hands/arms and knees, when the opponent is flat on his front side or on one or both knees in or from a kneeling position.
One (1) point will be awarded to the contestant who gets past his opponent’s feet (passes the guard) and gets a controlling position on the side of his/her contestant.
One (1) point will be awarded to the contestant who rolls, turns or sweeps his opponent over with control from the bottom (guard) position.

Article 9: Assessment of Penalties
The assessment of penalties is the same as in the current AAU Judo Rules unless otherwise stated. All violations of rules that are applicable in the current AAU Judo Rules apply here in these amendments as well.
1: Hansoku Make (Disqualification); Same as in the current AAU Judo Rules.
2: Order of penalties shall be awarded in the following:
Verbal Instructions: The referee shall award a verbal instruction to the athletes if they are (in his opinion) passive, too close to the edge of the mat or in other situations he deems necessary. In other words, the referee shall have the authority to talk to the athletes to attack more, avoid being too defensive or other situations to keep the pace of the match going, insure safety of the contestants and to be fair to both contestants. The referee and judges may talk to the contestants to keep the flow of the match moving, and fairness and safety.
Verbal Warning: Verbal Warning; The referee shall issue a verbal warning to one, or both, offending athletes for minor infractions (not infractions of the rules that would be assessed as a Keikoku or Hansoku Make in the current AAU Judo Rules.). The referee shall stop the match, turn to the offending contestant and verbally warn him/her, and if deemed necessary by the referee, explain why the verbal warning is being given. The referee shall not engage in conversation with the contestant or contestant’s coach. The referee shall quickly explain (if the referee chooses) the rule and continue the match without delay.
Chui (Caution): After a verbal warning to the offending contestant or contestants, the referee shall assess an official warning to the offending contestant. The referee shall stop the contest; have both contestants return to their respective starting marks on the mat and point to the offending contestant with his forefinger as he assesses the verbal warning and assess a 1 point penalty to the offending contestant. The referee shall announce “Chui (color). 1 point for (opposing color)” The referee shall then call “hajime” and continue the match.
Keikoku (Penalty): After the official warning, the referee shall stop the match, return the contestants to their respective starting marks on the mat, point to the offending contestant with his forefinger and announce “Keikoku (color); 2 points to (other color-opposing contestant).
Disqualification (Hansoku Make): The referee shall call “matte” and stop the contest, returning both contestants to their respective starting marks on the mat. The referee shall point to the offending contestant with his forefinger and announce “Hansoku Make” and then award the match to the opposing contestant by announcing “Hansoku Gachi.”
Immediate Penalty Assessment Equal to Keikoku: If the offending contestant violates the rules so that the initial penalty assessment would be an offense of a Keikoku (in the current standard AAU Judo Rules), the referee shall forego any verbal instruction, warning or caution and immediately assess a Keikoku to the offending contestant and award 2 points to the offending contestant’s opponent. The next penalty assessed to the offending contestant in this situation shall be Hansoku Make.

Article 10: Mat Officials
There shall be a referee and one or two mat judges for each match (two mat judges are preferred). The mat judges can move freely about the edge of the mat area to accommodate a better view of the action.

Article 11: Situations Not Included
Situations not included in these amendments and exceptions to the current AAU Judo Rules shall be decided by the national AAU Judo Rules Committee or National AAU Judo Chairman or Vice Chairman. For more information, contact Steve Scott at stevescottjudo@yahoo.com.

Okay, it's a beautiful spring day in Kansas City and I'm sitting here pecking away on this keyboard...time to get outside and do a little cardio. Talk to you next month.

**Mtripp** · Posted On: 5/11/2009 12:45pm

PS: Many pinheads over at the underground have a problem with me and "AAU Judo." Please note I really have nothing to do with it, other than my total support to anything Steve Scott or John Saylor do. Still, if people at the Underground have a problem with what they are doing, they should direct their wrath at them.....

**1point2** · Posted On: 5/11/2009 1:02pm

These rules are awesome. Pins get waza-ari but no ippon, turtling gets a warning while their opponent still has the opportunity to attack, and the guard has point value. Oh, and nonstandard standing grips are allowed as long as you're using them.

Well done. Where will it be used?

**1point2** · Posted On: 5/12/2009 12:05pm

Just read it again and saw that no-gi divisions are included, and the mat referees can walk around so they can see. Hopefully this will make the "sitting ref jumps up and swings their chair at bystanders since contestants are hurtling towards him at haraigoshi speeds" a thing of the past.

**milwaukee cop** · Posted On: 5/12/2009 1:41pm

I study under Norm Miller,the AAU Judo chairmen, good club, Hopefully My son and I can make the Grand nationals.

**Scrapper** · Posted On: 5/12/2009 1:49pm

Steve Scott is a real asset to judo. I trained in his jujitsu (Freestyle judo) class in KC before I switched to MMA. He is hardcore, and forgot more about judo before lunch than I may ever know.

If I could compete under these rules, I would probably dust the 'ol gi off and go for it.

**KO'd N DOA** · Posted On: 5/12/2009 2:29pm

This is the contest rules that I will try to get implemented in my JJJ. Our recent changes have made us go from laughable to laughed out of the dojo.

**JavaRonin** · Posted On: 5/12/2009 3:57pm

Thanks for posting these newsletters. I'm a recent joinee of the Welcome Mat Club and it's nice seeing the wealth spread around.

[I tried to +rep you but I get the homo/push-ups message.]